Sultans grind past Hesperia

HESPERIA - The big football game didn't turn out the way Sultana wanted, but the school didn't need to wait long for another shot at Hesperia.

The Sultans tennis team defeated its cross-town rival Monday 10-8 on the courts next to Scorpion Stadium, which hosted the 12th annual Key Game a few days earlier.

The match could not have been much closer, featuring plenty of tense and even testy moments.

The teams were tied after one round of play. They were tied after two rounds. And of course, the last match of the last round went down to a tiebreaker.

Alissa Moffett provided the equivalent of a game-winning field goal, defeating Hesperia's Nicky King 7-6 (3) for the 10th and clinching point.

That kept the teams from finishing tied and having the match decided on total games.

"It was huge," Sultana coach Jennifer Wiedeman said. "The girls wanted to solidify the win, just win outright and not have to go to a tiebreak and count games."

No less important was Kelsie Skarbek and Brittany Graham beating Hesperia's No. 1 doubles squad of Katherine Bednarski and Savanna Jeffers in their final match of the day, 6-4.

Sultana's superior depth on the doubles side made the difference. The Sultans won seven of the nine doubles matches. Hesperia's singles players - King, Shenae Shampine and Kaitlyn Mitchell - each took two of three sets.

Skarbek-Graham and Moffett were the only players to go undefeated on the day. They completed their sweeps on adjacent courts in the final round. The crucial matches were interrupted simultaneously to bring in line judges when the players couldn't agree on calls.

"It got really intense," Graham said. "Everyone was under a lot of pressure, but I do good under pressure."

Graham and Skarbek recovered from an early service break to reel off three consecutive games for the victory. Graham controlled the final game with a strong serve. She called for a lob from the baseline on match point, but Skarbek aggressively drilled an overhead winner.

"I think we concentrated more," said Skarbek, a fourth-year varsity player and senior captain. "We told each other that we knew we could do it. We just focused and got (our shots) in."

Moffett faced a much deeper hole against King. The senior fell behind 5-1, then made a gritty comeback to force a tiebreaker.

The back-and-forth match made for a comical scene on the sideline. The dads of both players were pressed against the chain-link fence, side-by-side, looking more nervous than their daughters.

In the end, Moffett showed the poise of a senior against King, a talented freshman.

"After I caught up from 1-5, it gives you a lot of confidence," said Moffett, who did not drop a game in her other two matches. "I just tried to play smart and cut my errors."

With Serrano leaving everyone behind in the Mojave River League, Sultana (12-4, 4-2 MRL) put itself in good position to lock up the second seed. Had the Scorpions (8-3, 3-3) won Monday, they would have seized the tiebreaker for second place.

Now the Sultans can clinch the second MRL playoff spot with another win or Hesperia loss. Sultana plays Rim of the World next, and the Scorpions still have to face the undefeated Diamondbacks again.

"It's big because I think it solidifies our spot in second, which is good," Skarbek said. "We're proud."